Final Chapter in Limes Murder Chopping

Calvin Simon and Nathan Charles – finally sentenced for the offenses of murder

Closure has finally come to the June 30, 2007 chopping to death of 35-year old Rennie St. John of Grand Anse Housing Scheme at the hands of three men.

Calvin Simon who was 19 years at the time of the incident was the last person to be sentenced for the crime.

His two accomplices, Delon Honore and Anderson Thomas were already serving a prison sentence for murder.

Simon who pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of manslaughter last year has been handed a nine-year prison sentence by Madam Justice Clare Henry on Tuesday that is to run from the time he was on remand.

He was detained on July 1, 2007 and charged with murder, and in the May 2012 Criminal Assizes he pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

In handing down the sentence, Justice Henry ordered that the convicted man receive counseling in anger management, and in alcohol and drug use.

The chopping to death of St. John came after the deceased had delivered some blows with a cutlass on Honore two weeks before the fatal incident.

On the day of the incident itself, the three convicted men reportedly met St. John who was 26 years at the time of his death at the Dynamite Disco in The Limes and an altercation began between them.

St. John was chased by the three men, each armed with a cutlass, but fell in the process and repeatedly chopped on all parts of his body by his attackers.

The deceased man received 11 lacerations, and had one of his arms completely severed.

The sentencing of St. John’s was delayed due to some issues of his mental health that was brought to the attention of the court.

At the sentencing on Tuesday, defense attorney Cajeton Hood told the court his client who is now 24 years old entered the Mt. Gay Mental Hospital on two occasions – February 2006 and February 2007 – because he appears to have some level of instability and was in need of help.

The social inquiry report indicated that Simon appears to lack the capacity to remain focus for a prolonged period of time.

Meanwhile, Madam Justice Clare Henry has handed down a 22-year prison sentence on Nathan Charles for a murder that occurred in 2000.

However, from every indication, the convicted man has to spend a further two years at the Richmond Hill Prisons before he is released due to the time already spent in prison.

The court learnt that by this April, Charles would have already been incarcerated for 13 calendar years, which when calculated amounts to nineteen and a half prison years.

Charles who was first convicted for the murder of Philomena Charles of Park Lane, St. George’s was sentenced to death.

However, that decision was overturned by the Privy Council in London, which ruled that the sentence was invalid.

The re-sentencing of the convicted man was delayed due to some issues with regard to his mental state.

He underwent mental assessments on three occasions from Dr. Hazel Da Breo, with the last one being on January 14.

The two sentencing were the final ones to be handed down by Justice Henry in this jurisdiction since she is due to leave sometime next week to serve in her homeland of Antigua